AGE-old INSTRUMENT ice age flute betoert the researchers of Markus Becker archaeologist on the Swabian Alb the perhaps oldest music instrument of the world discovered. Those approximately 35,000 years old flute was carved at enormous expenditure from solid ivory. Thus it seems proven that humans already up-played in the ice age to the dance. University of Tübingen ice-age ivory flute: Luxurioeses instrument whoever this flute from the stosszahn of a giant cut, had its music love. "like roll a Royce beside a Toyota" work the ivory instrument, if one compares it with a simple bone flute. Nicholas Conard, 43, can avoid superlative only with noticeable trouble, if he speaks of his newest find. The ivory flute, which the archaeologist of the University of Tübingen with its team in the Geissenkloesterle cave found with Blaubeuren, is one of the three oldest well-known clay/tone tools of the world. All three were found at the Geissenkloesterle, but the flute from the stosszahn is the instrument - and possibly also the oldest of the world luxurioeseste with distance. The researchers the deposits, in which the fragments of the flute were, with the help of which radio carbon method on an age of 30.000 to 36,000 years dated. Thus the ivory instrument would be about 1000 years younger than one at the same place 1995 discovered bone flute. A second procedure, thermal luminescence dating, resulted in against it an age of 37,000 years. "radio carbon in organic material was in that time strong fluctuations subjected", says Conard in the discussion with MIRROR ON-line ONE. "therefore the thermal luminescence is at least just as important." High cultural level which instrument the oldest is, does not leave themselves not with absolute certainty to say. The actual value of the ivory flute lies also not in the age record, but in its meaning for the discussion around the beginnings of the culture. "we can see now for the first time clear that the history of the music hands back, stresses 35,000 years" Conard. In the time at that time the last Neandertaler and first modern humans lived in Europe both. Owing to the flute it is now clearly proven that the inhabitants of ice-age Europe were culturally capable of similar things as today living humans. "an individual instrument from the ice age could go through still as curiosity", says Conard. "however since this find no more speech can be from a coincidence. The music was obviously already at that time an important component of the life." Whereupon point also the fact that in a cave equivalent three flutes were found. Conard explains, represents archaeological finds from the ice age always only "tiny samples" of the entire processes. "that we found, speak in one of these samples equal three music instruments for itself." University of Tübingen archaeologist Conard: "there was a singing and a dancing" Friedrich Seeberger, a specialist for archaeological music, the age-old instruments from the ice age, discovered before, reconstructed. Their note range, so the result of the experiments, might have permitted it to the praehistorischen Floetisten to up-pass on variant-rich and aesthetically. Which meaning obviously possessed the music for the Eiszeitler, let yourself not least from the aufwaendigen processing of the ivory flute read off. "an instrument from a solid stosszahn instead of from a hollow bird bone to make, is perfectly unusual", schwaermt Conard. Manufacturing complicated and with difficulty. Since the stosszahn bent and drill presses future music were, a simple drilling was not applicable. The ice-age artist had to split the tooth up carefully and scoop out the halves precisely. Subsequently, so the analysis of the archaeologists, the halves scarcely 19 centimeters are enough instrument with the utmost care stuck. The gap it had to be so perfectly worked that he did not let happen Lueftchen. "who builds such a piece of splendour, has the function in the sense", does not only mean for Conard. The sound was deeper perhaps "more largely and" than the one simple bone flute, but physically the complicated ivory construction changed for nothing in the function of the flute. "there someone wanted to absolutely have something special", believes the archaeologist. Splendor in the ice age the luxury flute supports the thesis that in the ice-age Schwabenlaendle creativity exploded as it were. Because the there caves do not only have age-old clay/tone tools, but also the oldest well-known plastic works of art approved. Some researcher doubts still whether the creative Big fear for an achievement of modern humans or the going down Neandertaler was. Thus or thus it seems to be certain now however that in the caves on the Alb one did not only carve but also one gefloetet, - the latter with splendid equipment. A culture, which affords in a materially as difficult time as the ice age such luxury instruments, must have measured a high value to the music out, believes Conard. "is hardly conceivable", means the archaeologist, "that it at that time no singing and dancing gave." from MIRROR, Germany